re: What is wrong with "Charity"?

alps jain — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 14:04:17 GMT

I too agree with Elizabeth

re: What is wrong with "Charity"?

Elizabeth de Almeida — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 21:32:07 GMT

I never thought about the difference between the two. However, upon reading this, I do believe charity is the best word to use.

re: What is wrong with "Charity"?

Jeff Stern — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 21:58:04 GMT

I think that rather than the religious undertones, the disuse came from a hope to change the service paradigm. People working in the social sector wanted to change the idea that there are "haves" and "have-nots" and that the "haves" are inherently better. Rather than enforcing this social hierarchy, there was a movement I was in the early to mid '90s (alongside the burgeoning PC movement) to change to a language and model that saw service providers and recipients as partners in building stronger communities. Organizations "flipped the script" and started making "asset maps" in addition to (or sometimes instead of) the traditional "needs assessments." Working at a volunteer center at that time, we "mobilized community resources" rather than connecting people with charities.

I think that there is some merit to the idea that service providers (those in the field) and volunteers should look at their work through this lens, rather than the traditional "charity work" lens with its somewhat patronizing connotations of (moral and financial) superiority. However, from the donor side of things, the word charity is still very powerful (although a new donor demographic prefers to make an "investment" in the community).